Lost in Shadows
by darkfire888
Summary: Post-canon, AxA. They were trapped in the shadows. "How did we get here?" "I want to leave." "We can't leave. There's no exit..."
1. Chapter 1

S/N: Hi! It be Sara, the co-author/beta reader of Darkfire! We be here with a new tale, and for the wondering: Wolfheart will update, it's not abandoned. And an interesting tidbit: This first chapter was created almost entirely on the FF messaging service.

D/N: I have no idea how I thought of this. But think of this as a I don't know think what you want. But I like it and Sara is right we will update Wolfheart soon!

Anzu looked out the window. Inside, the teacher droned on, voice a monotone easy to ignore. Outside was gray, clouds looming over all.

The weather had been like this recently, as if wishing to fit her mood.

Had it really been only mere months since Atem had gone on to the Afterlife? It felt like years. Years of agony, and panicking whenever she saw the puzzle gone. She wanted him back!

She wanted her heart back.

A nasal buzzing cut the air, signifying that school was out. There was an immediate rushing as other students tried to leave. The gang followed at a more sedate pace.

"Why is life so down suddenly?" Anzu asked herself.

Yugi just looked at her briefly, before dropping his gaze. The leaving of Atem had confirmed a fear of his. Anzu was in love with Atem, and thought of him as only a friend. They were both in the clutches of the creature known as heartbreak.

"Let's go guys." Jounochi called.

They walked down the sidewalk, and Anzu felt the gray of her world settle over her.

As they walked by a park, a cat appeared. It was a tabby, black with gray stripes. It gazed at her.

"What, kitty?"

It flicked an ear, then its eyes widened. It backed up, then scrambled into the park.

"Follow the cat!"

And the gang scrambled into the park, following the little creature as it ducked, weaved, and used every trick it probably knew, pushing through trees, bushes and brambles.

Then it stopped, probably exhausted, and wailed. The gang was mere feet from it as they all suddenly blacked out, a swarming darkness filling vision...

They woke in darkness. A thick swirling darkness, filled with shades of purple, blue, and especially black.

"What the hell?" Honda's voice echoed back to them.

Jounochi groaned. "Shut up Honda. My head's pounding..."

Anzu sat up gingerly. Her head hurt too, but she'd dealt with lots of headaches and migraines every time the gang "played" with shadow magic, so she was used to it. "Let's just figure out where we are." She muttered, noting the angry looks on Honda's and Jounochi's faces. How could they go at it now? Really.

"Agreed." Yugi said, albite quietly. The echo was rather painful to hear.

Being the adventurous people they were, the gang began the slow job of looking around.

A while later, both Jounochi and Honda collapsed. "Does it ever end? I need food." Jounochi cried, clutching his stomach. Honda did the same.

Anzu, her headache having not left, snapped. She kicked them both sharply in the ribs. "Stop thinking of your stomachs, and help figure out where we are!"

The gang jumped, staring at Anzu.

"Um... Well... What's the last thing we remember?" Yugi offered.

Anzu blushed, realizing that she had been thinking of Atem.

"I don't remember a thing." Jounochi whined.

The cat mewed, as if not to be forgotten, which it unfortunately already had.

Anzu bent down. "Hi kitty. Who're you?"

"We should test to see if Anzu's bipolar." Jounochi whispered.

"I heard that!"

"Wait, wasn't the cat there?"

"So let's ask the cat!" Jounochi said triumphantly. This got him a few looks. "So. What were you doing?"

The cat mewed. "So you admit it!"

The cat shook its head.

"Oh. Ok. I understand."

Yugi, Honda and Anzu all stared at him.

"What?"

Collective stares.

The cat rubbed up against Anzu, purring. It had the effect of soothing her head slightly, enough for her to think.

"Guys..." she whispered, "I think... We're... In the shadow realm..."

"What?"

"How?"

"But... You need millennium items for that... Don't you?" Yugi whispered.

Anzu shrugged. "Who knows. Come on. Let's see if anything friendly is here."

"Remember? Back when we were in that game? Atem's father was sent-"

"Yug. You said it yourself. That was a game." Jounochi cut him off.

"But it could be real!"

They sighed, but it was Yugi. They trusted his intuition, and sanity. Especially his sanity.

"If you're so sure..." Anzu whispered. She picked up the cat. "Let's get looking."

They began to trudge through the darkness, softly calling.

"Hello?"

"Anyone there?"

"Someone..."

The voices faded eventually, Anzu clutched the cat closer, suddenly filled with a wave of emptiness. As if all she cared about had left, and all was loneliness. Not that there was much left. She'd been having fits of depression lately.

Looking around, she could see why this sudden wave. The gang was suddenly gone. It was like her nightmares come real. All there was was one strange cat in her arms and the urge to cry, which she did.

"Mew?"

"Why is everything like this?" she whispered to damp black fur. "Everybody leaves me. Everyone I care about."

There was a sudden sound of footsteps. Anzu looked up at the approaching figure. It was human, definitely, and wandering about.

She called out, too late realizing it might be a trick of the realm.

S/N: I wonder who it could be... Eh. You'll find out. Please review with comments, critiques, and anything else that comes to mind. But no spam or flames.

D/N: Sorry Wolfheart is taking so long


	2. Chapter 2

S/N: Sorry it's late! Things... Happened.

D/N: It's late because I broke my arm but everything if fine so enjoy

He stared at the shape in front of him. It had called out, a definite questioning hello, in that voice.

"You guys aren't playing tricks on me, are you?" he muttered.

Yet the shadows shifted around this creature with well-concealed unease. They weren't sure what to do.

Then a soft mew, what had called him in the first place, that the shadows never dared imitate. The distinctive, voice-like call of Ruu the cat.

Still, he approached warily, till he saw it.

There was Ruu the cat, known for befriending, even tolerating but one person. And here he was, cuddling up to Anzu.

She looks up, scared.

"You're not real..."

Atem was thinking the same thing to himself. But that was Ruu...

"In a way, I guess. But there are few rules to this realm. I'm Atem, Anzu."

She hugged Ruu tighter, refusing to look at him. Atem stood there, waiting for her mind to sort through it all. Stepping near her just might convince her he was fake, something he desperately didn't want.

Ever since he'd left, he'd been alone. Even in the afterlife, he'd been alone, separated by experiences, thoughts, memories keeping him from the people he'd grown up with.

"_I don't know you."_

"_You've changed so much."_

"_Who ARE you?"_

At least in the shadow realm, it didn't matter so much. The creatures couldn't speak, few bothered to care, most hated or avoided him.

It was why he banished himself here.

She seemed to finally get it, that he was real. Ruu stepped delicately out of her arms.

"Mew." he commented to Atem.

Atem barely even nodded, watching Anzu because she looked like she was about to faint. Ruu jumped into his arms. He smiled.

"Well you sure get around." Atem said as he petted the cats head.

"But … that's ….. how" Anzu shuddered still looking at him like he was a trick.

"Tell me you found food..." Hondas voice sounded behind Atem. He turned to see Honda and Jounochi clutching their stomachs.

"How are you guys still worried about food?" Anzu yelled at them.

"We're starved! And something back there chased us!"

Atem looked at them.

"You don't need to eat here. The hunger is a body reflex. Little more than an illusion."

"N-Atem?"

"It's fake man. He wouldn't be here." Jounochi whispers.

Atem sighed. Though glad his friends knew to be suspicious, this was a bit much.

"Look. I know you don't believe me. I know I went to the afterlife. Believe me when I say that I came here, and I'm Atem."

"Why?" Anzu stared at him with a piercing gaze. He kept his eyes on Ruu.

"Guilt."

Jounochi and Honda joined the contest.

"If he's fake, he's either really good or doesn't know anything."

Atem sighed. "You don't believe me, do you?"

"Guilty over what?"

Atem sat. It made it easier to not glance at their faces.

"Kul Elna. People died for the sake of a few shiny objects. And then I mistreated the puzzle, throwing it around, breaking it, letting other steal it and just general abuse. It's hard to NOT feel responsible."

"A-" There was a voice.

Yugi. If one person could tell he was real, it was Yugi.

He'd grown, definitely grown. The innocent look was waning, leaving an adult behind.

"Atem."

Yugi started crying.

"Wa- Yug, you ok?"

Ruu shot over, the new resident therapy cat.

"I can't believe you're here," Yugi said, voice muffled in cat fur. "You went to the afterlife. I thought..." He gives a shuddering breath. "I know you leaving meant I was ready to move on by myself, but it's so hard to give up a friend like that."

There was nodding, and eye avoidance.

Standing, Atem walked over to Yugi. They could nearly see eye to eye.

"I know."

Ruu jumped down as a group hug ensued.

Almost a group hug. Anzu had herself outcast.

"I can't," she whispered. "I can't get attached. He'll just leave again."

Immediately Atem noticed Anzu not in the hug; he turned to her extending an arm asking her to join. Anzu took a step back as everyone looked at her. Atem looked like he had just been punched in the gut, when she rejected this offer. Atem let go of everyone and stepped closer to her.

"Please don't." Anzu whispered, taking a few steps back.

"Don't what?" Atem asked as he started walking to her.

To everyone's shock, she ran. Atem was the first to react as he ran after her. But for the others, even Ruu, it took a little longer.

"Anzu!"

"Anzu!"

They called her name, racing through the dark.

Atem thought he saw her, but the shadows were too gleeful. He looked elsewhere.

There she was. Collapsed on the ground, so scared and alone and tearful...

He sat next to her, hugging her.

"Anzu, what's wrong?"

She pushed him away. "Leave already. You're going to anyway."

Atem was silent. This could go either way anyway. She could leave the shadow realm by some miracle and that be true or be stuck here, which she probably would. But she would think the second one was a lie.

He hugged her again.

"You can't leave here Anzu. It's a one way entrance." He whispered. Truth is always-

She slapped him. She slapped him!

He stared at her.

"Liar. We've left before, after shadow games. If there's a way in, there's a way out. How else do these creatures terrify children?"

She panted as she spoke, anger in every breath.

He flinched at the child part.

"You don't know what it was like, watching you walk away like that. You chose willingly to leave us. Doors are choices, you could've refused. So you know, if you were so attached to the people who treated you distantly than the people who opened their hearts for you to pick apart, they you should've STAYED THERE! I don't care how noble you were trying to be coming here. You...You...YOU FUCKING HEART-BREAKER!"

She started crying again. Atem froze, not sure what to do.

Limbs shaking, he eased up next to her, slowly pulling her into her chest. She latched onto his linen shirt, letting it catch her tears.

"Shhh... Just cry it out. Just cry it out..."

She spoke in-between sobs, whispers of her dreams and hopes. If she was stuck here, they would never happen.

"I wanted to dance."

"See New York."

"Watch sunrises."

And one that him feel sick, though he couldn't tell why, at first: "Raise a family..."

Eventually, she fell asleep. Atem held her, wishing he could banish the sick feeling in his stomach. Did she have a boyfriend? Someone she cared for enough to want his children?

What if it was Yugi?

S/N: Heh heh heh...

D/N: Don't yell at me she thought of it!


	3. Chapter 3

Tada! No words can speak our pride at doing this so fast!

My goodness we are just so happy with updating!

Anzu woke warm and desperately comfortable.

Atem was holding her. She nearly screamed. He, Atem, a pharaoh, holding her like this! In his terms, she was a peasant!

A poor peasant.

She could see a bit of an eye from where she was, pressed against his chest. There was a dark look to it. Something was troubling him... She shivered. She knew what could happened to those that upset him. Maybe he didn't have the puzzle, but this was the shadow rea...

He looked at her, parting hazelnut lips. That angered look had hidden itself, and the look right now had melted her brain.

"You're awake."

"I-G-L-You-M-Deh-" She shut up.

He stood, still holding her. "So what happened to your ankle?"

She looked at his collarbone, blushing. "M-D-Nothing."

Something swirled around him, leaving him in the leather she remembered. The tan skin remained. She couldn't help noticing scars-thin lines tracing parts of his skin. Also, the area around his neck was almost flawless...

"Anzu. I don't like being lied to..."

A retort slid onto her tongue.

He chuckled. "Which makes me a hypocrite."

Oh gods. She really wanted to sink her teeth into that skin, just to see what it felt like...

He started walking. "So. What's changed since I left? Gramps fine? How has everyone been adapting? Anyone got a date?"

She had to count to ten before answering, so she wouldn't gasp or pant. She could feel every muscle working beneath his shirt.

"Not much has happened. Gramps is fine, just getting a little slower in the limbs. As for dates, Rebecca and were going to get set up by me and Jounochi, but this happened, so there goes that bl-"

That dark part in his eyes was gone. As soon as she mentioned Yugi and Rebec, he was calmer.

Also, there was a rather thick scar starting about the right side of his collarbone, slashing diagonally across his skin, disappearing under his shirt.

"Is something wrong?"

"I-What? No!"

He grimaced. "It's the scars, isn't it?"

"Wha-I-"

"It doesn't matter. Feel free to stare. It's fine. Everybody else does anyway."

Anzu looked at him shocked and slightly annoyed. That's it all he said is everyone looks at them; if he saw her staring he could at least tell her how he got them. But Anzu just shook it off 'If he wants to tell me,' she thought, 'then he will.'

"You think people had never seen scars." She reached out, touching it lightly. He flinched.

"Sorry."

"It's... Ok..."

There was silence for a while. To try to not notice Atem, she focused on her ankle, which she had twisted earlier.

"So what DID you do to your ankl-"

"Nothing. End of discussion."

Atem sighed, stopping. "I can't help if I don't know what's wrong."

"I just twisted it, ok? Not that..." He was looking at her.

Atem sat down. "Here." He placed a hand on her ankle, and it glowed a little. "That should help it."

It hurt though. Really desperately hurt...

"Speeding up healing can hurt. Don't worry. It'll be ok..." He hugged her.

She distracted herself with a question, going against earlier thought. "How'd you get-"

"This?" He fingered the slash. "This is what killed me the first time. It loops across my chest and down my side."

Anzu swallowed.

What was really scary was how casual he was about it. This had killed him, for gods sake!

"I want to go home." She whispered.

There was someone coming their way. Atem instantly shoved Anzu off his lap and sat next to her like nothing happened.

"Atem? Oh. Who's she?"

"Father." He gave a slight bow of the head. "This is Anzu."

He smiled, one that was familiar. "Ah, the famous Anzu. So how DID she get here?"

General shrugging. "Also, we're looking for the rest of the gang."

"So this Yugi, Jounochi and... Honda?"

Nodding.

"Let's look over here. The realm has a left obsession."

Atem carried Anzu again. This time piggyback. He seemed colder now...

She listened to them talk in a strange rough language, and tried not to shiver. It was scary...

At one point, she heard them say her name, but it was bent by their accent. Atem blushed and shouted something.

"You know things echo around here, right?" She leaned her forehead on his shoulder. "It's not helping anything..."

"Like."

"My headache."

Even his damn father was kinder, asking her questions to track it down to...The shadow realm.

"The magic here affects you this way. Sadly, cures do not exist."

"Not enough aspirin in the world, obviously." she muttered, upset that Atem hadn't done a thing. Instead, he was shaking slightly.

As the walking began again the silence began to thicken with building tension. It became so much that Atem's father distanced himself, slowly.

"Hey Atem?"

"Hm."

"Why is your dad 6'5 and you're barely 5'5?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"You don't ask why Yugi's short. And for the record, I'm 5'6."

'What's the difference?' she thought. "Well Yugi has a short grandfather, and even his dad isn't very tall."

"I don't ca-"

"He was born a twin, the twin was born dead, and Atem was a runt."

"Father."

What was with these guys and dead-flat statements?

"Oh. So... Want a little brother? I'm trying to get rid of mine."

"No. I've got enough half-siblings."

His dad winced.

Out of things to say, and with her head pounding, she leaned her head on Atem's shoulder and pretended to sleep. Maybe it would work, she would wake up and it would be like Dorothy in that weird American movie they watched in English class.

It didn't, but she got to listen in to a very interesting conversation.

"Atem."

"Hm."

"You like her, don't you?"

"Father! She might be listening..."

"She looks asleep to me. Stop worrying."

To be more convincing, she snuggled down, muttering a half-intelligeble version of the words "teddy bear."

"See?"

"Still don't like her."

"Such blatant lies. You used to be such a good boy. What happened?"

"I don't-"

"Could you say that under spell?"

Silence.

Anzu could've cried. He liked her! He did!

Now to get him to admit it...

Now she really did sleep.

She woke up later. Atem's father was gone, and she was using his thigh as a pillow.

Atem was leaning on his other leg, knee an arm rest.

Anzu sat up, and regretted it. Blood rushed around her head.

"Ugh..."

"You ok?"

"Fine."

"M." He nodded.

Dammit! Care already!

Alright then. Now how go around this...

"Hey Atem?"

"What?"

"Let's say you like someone..."

His gaze darkened slightly. "And?"

"I mean really like. And you think they like you. But you're not entirely sure! And you think it's possible they like someone else!"

Things died under looks like that.

"What do you do? What do you say?"

He looked away so she couldn't see his face, but it was probably glaring. Yes! That had to mean something!

"Just say it. If you can't bring yourself to, actions speak louder than words." Then he stood. "Come on. Your ankle should be fine now."

He refused to glance or stand within three feet of her.

It's hard to tell how time passes in the shadow realm. Her watch got depressed and it'd worked, she'd been here two whole days. Two days, and now she was sure it'd been nearly a week. A week of Atem avoiding her, finding downright nothing but creepy voices, a fit of depression without her meds, and an ever-rising sexual tension.

Oh yeah, and waking up from naps to find Atem very, very close to her. As in inches.

He looked so gentle in his sleep, when all the tenseness went south.

She was also quite sure he kissed while she was asleep once, because she woke up with her lips tingling and feeling the warmth of his body as he whispered something she couldn't hear.

She just couldn't take it!

"Atem." She grabbed his arm.

He shrugged her off. "What?"

'Look at me.' "You know how I asked you... About..."

"You like someone. Who's it again?"

"It-" She stared at his back. All her emotional stress began surface, and she teared up. "It's..."

He was listening now as he turned to look at her. His eyes were dark. "You don't need to tell me. It's doesn't matter."

"Yes it does! Atem! It's..." She gulped, whispering, "It's you."

She couldn't look at him now. She could be wrong. They could've been talking about something else...

His arms wrapped around her, and he tilted her head up.

Lips collided. Her brain fuzzed over and any semblance to a ground disappeared under her, taking a chunk of the tension with it.

"Hey gu-Woah."

They broke apart. There was Jounochi, staring bug-eyed.

"What are you-"

"Curing her depression?"

"Hey Honda! Yug! You guys missed it! 'Tem an Anz were-"

"Were what?"

He looked down at Yugi. "Makin-"

"We were not!" Anzu screeched.

"Alright. Fine. Just kissing. Whatever."

And enter the silence. The dead awkward silence.

"So. Can we try to get out of here no-" Ruu jumped on Jounochi's head, looked at him and hissed something. "Wait, we should wha- Ok... No really... Uhhh...Ruu. You can't. You're a girl."

Silence. "Gender-confused cat."

"I was told she was.." Atem coughed. "Neutered."

"She also says we need to head that way, cause there's something with teeth coming our way."

"Jounochi Katsuya. Cat-translator." Honda said.

Then they ran.

"We-Still-Need-To-Get-Out!" Anzu panted.

They had no idea where they were going, something big with teeth was running after them and Jounochi was listening to a cat.

"This way!"

It took forever to duck and dodge their way out of this one. When they finally stopped, it was a collapse, not a stop. Everybody lying on the ground or sitting, about to.

"Ok... Now.. Let's... Try... To leave..."

Anzu looked at him. "I thought... You said... we couldn't...?"

"We've...gotten lucky be...before."

A while of quiet.

"Ruu would know! Remember?"

"Yeah..."

"So Ruu. How do we get out?"

Ruu purred, and started walking.

Here they were. Following a cat.

Seeing as they all probably just ran a couple miles, Anzu was surprised to find that she could actually walk at all, and probably walked several more miles till they all just fell over to sleep.

And Anzu discovered she suddenly was scared of sleeping without something warm next to her, so she snuggled up to Atem.

"Wha-Oh."

Knock out.

Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles...

What do you people think?


End file.
